Thursday, May 13, 2010

Through an innovative partnership with the City of Puyallup and the Puyallup Fair and Events Center, Sound Transit is responding to the high demand for additional parking at the Puyallup Sounder station. The project creates a permanent 219-space park-and-ride lot by improving the Fair’s existing Red Lot, just minutes away from the Sounder station. Pierce Transit Route 495 will be timed to connect commuters to and from the train.

With construction lasting only about three months, the lot will open for Puyallup Fair attendees this September and will be available to Sounder commuters beginning in October. Improvements include grading and paving the lot, plus adding drainage, landscaping, and replacement lighting. As part of Sound Transit’s commitment to using low-impact development techniques, the project incorporates a unique rain garden – or combination of soil and plant types -- that will collect water runoff from paved surfaces, serving as a natural stormwater management tool.

Project fundingThe project’s $2.8 million budget will be covered by a combination of grant money and Sound Transit funds. Along with $250,000 in matching funds from Sound Transit’s budget, the project received a $1.85 million Regional Mobility Grant from the State of Washington. In addition, the City of Puyallup secured a $772,000 grant from the Federal Transit Administration, USDOT.

The Regional Access Mobility Partnership

RAMP (Regional Access Mobility Partnership) is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State.

Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it.

The partnership is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier, Port of Tacoma Commissioner Don Meyer and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson.

RAMP usually meets the 1st Wednesday of every month from 8-9 a.m. at the Fabulich Center in the Port of Tacoma. For more information email davids@tacomachamber.org